Why would you want to start cooking from scratch in a world where everyone is used to eating premade processed foods? Here are 10 reasons why I think you might want to start cooking from scratch a bit more. Everything from tastier and healthier food to improving your mental health in the process.
Nowadays, I can cook almost anything from scratch and love seeing my ingredients turn into a meal. But I wasn’t always so good at making a meal from nothing more than the raw ingredients. Years ago, I would call up my mum whenever I was cooking to ask how long things had to cook for. I would always forget the cooking times for things. It was a nightmare trying to have multiple dishes ready at the same time for serving. I would cook lots of pasta dishes and always felt I had to buy premade sauces for those pasta dishes.
How I got started with cooking from scratch
But luckily, it didn’t take me long before I realised that I could make things from scratch. It all started because I started reading the back of the jars and found that I felt uncomfortable eating all the unnecessary additives. But I also saw the ingredients that were used in those premade jars of sauce. And figured that I could just look at the back of the jars to figure out which ingredients to put in my favourite dishes. I did not have easy access to the internet and didn’t own a phone yet, so this is how I did my cooking recipe research for a big part of my adult life.
I would literally pick up a boxed meal from the store and walk around with it in the store as if it was my shopping list. People must have thought I was bonkers for walking around with a jar of pre-made pasta sauce so that I could find my raw ingredients. But it worked, and that is all that matters. Right? I was able to recreate all my usual recipes, and as time went on, I was able to cook more and more things from scratch.
The moral of the story is that if you think that you will never master cooking from scratch without breaking a sweat. Then don’t worry, because if I can go from calling my mum every evening for cooking advice to giving my mum cooking advice then so can you. All it takes is a lot of small steps. This is also why I love sharing the really basic recipes with you. Because once you’ve mastered the basics, you can cook anything you could ever want.
Why cook from scratch
But why should you go through the trouble of cooking things from scratch? Especially, if unlike me, you’re not slightly apprehensive about the unnecessary additives? Well, that is why I compiled this cool list for you. With reasons ranging from being able to enjoy tastier meals to impressing friends with your delicious homecooked meals.
Because just being able to create something from scratch might be all I need to be convinced that it is something I want to do. Granted, I don’t need a lot of reasons to try my hand at making something myself. But not all people are the same. And you might not feel that being able to make spaghetti from nothing but some flour and an egg is a cool skill to have. If that is you, then I would ask you to go through the reasons listed below. You might learn something you didn’t know before.
1. Do you love eating?
If you absolutely adore food and think that food is more than something to keep you alive. But rather than good food is something essential to a happy life. Then I would say cooking from scratch is perfect for you. You will be able to tailor all the flavours and ingredients to your unique palette. No more half-decent meals that bring you no joy to eat. No more having to go to fancy restaurants to get truly delicious food. And finding yourself broke from all the eating out.
You can make your own meals exactly how you want them with the ingredients that you love. So that every meal and every snack that you eat can bring you joy.
2. Cooking from scratch is healthier
Most of us know that fast food is not quite the healthiest choice, but not as many realise that most of the premade processed foods are also not ideal. This is because the companies that produce these foods have to make them shelf-stable. Which means they need to add preservatives and stabilisers. And there are some safety concerns around these chemicals. And then there are the concerns about lack of nutrients, food freshness, and possible allergies that can be triggered when cross-contamination has taken place.
But all these concerns go out the window when you prepare the meals yourself. And with all this healthier and more nutritional food you will have more energy too.
3. Spend less on better food
I’m naturally frugal and cringe when I hear about the amount of money people are spending on food. I can’t even say for certain if I would be cooking from scratch if it was not financially also the wiser choice. So luckily, I’ve found in over 10 years of cooking from scratch that it is always cheaper to cook from scratch. We are a family of four who eat homemade from scratch meals three times a day, and we spend less on food than most of our single friends.
By buying in bulk when possible and eating seasonally, you can greatly reduce your food expenses, even more so when cooking from scratch. And all that money you save on unhealthy processed foods you can use to do something fun with your family.
4. How cooking can help you relax
Especially if you eat a lot of veggies, you will find yourself chopping up a lot of them. And a lot of people find that mindless repetitive tasks are actually very relaxing for them. (don’t worry, there are always food processors if you prefer less chopping work) There is something almost meditative about stirring your risotto for a prolonged period. It empties your mind, and you find yourself happier and less stressed than you were before. And being able to enjoy a good plate of risotto afterward is just an added bonus.
My husband will sometimes take the girls on a walk while I prepare dinner. We like to do this sometimes so that cooking can just be a bit more relaxing. Because some days, these are the only moments that the house is truly calm and quiet. That way, I can just enjoy the cooking process while I listen to some music.
So if you suffer from a stressful life, why not try and cook a meal from scratch and feel the calm that comes from cooking from scratch.
5. Make it a social occasion
When we think of cooking, we tend to think of the preparation of food. But cooking can also be a communal experience, a moment where everyone works together to work towards one common goal. And during these moments, we feel connected in a way few other things can make us feel. At the end of the cooking process, we have created something nourishing and delicious. Which we can enjoy together, and it is all the sweeter from the knowledge that we created it together.
When cooking together, whether as a group or as a couple, you will find it is accompanied by lots of laughter. It is just so much fun to cook together. Being able to teach each other new skills. But also being able to delegate tasks to whoever is best at a particular task.
So call up some friends and create an extravagant feast together.
6. Cooking from scratch is a craft
Cooking from scratch is just as much a skill as any other crafting skill. And just as coopering, spinning yarn, woodturning, basketry, and many more old-fashioned skills are now on the brink of extinction. Things like cooking from scratch and with the seasons in mind so that we preserve our harvests are in danger of being altogether forgotten. If we don’t learn a skill or craft and we are unable to pass it on to the next generation. Then these skills and crafts will become relics of a time gone by. And wouldn’t it be an everlasting shame if we forgot to cook the way our great grandmothers once did? If I could only have 10 lifetimes I would try and learn all the old skills, so as to save them from extinction.
With you gaining the many skills that go into cooking from scratch, the way we’ve done for hundreds of years. You will find yourself empowered by the knowledge that no matter where you find yourself in life. You can prepare a good wholesome meal with whatever you have available. I think this is also why people are so intrigued by WWII rationing and depression-era recipes. Because, during these times, so many had so little, but the mothers found ways to still feed their families.
My own great-grandmother, who had 14 children to feed. Would always put oats into her meatballs to make the mince stretch. And her recipe was passed down to my grandmother, mother, and eventually to me. We all still make our meatballs the way she did back then, for they are delicious, filling, and part of our heritage.
7. Swapping ingredients and following the seasons
When you cook from scratch, you are able to see the raw ingredients. Therefore you will automatically have a better understanding of which ingredient you can swap for another ingredient. With time you will discover that certain vegetables work best with other ingredients and which ones are interchangeable. You will find that you become much more resourceful than you would have ever thought possible.
Especially if you follow the seasons with your cooking, you will find that so many different vegetables can be used in a meal by just slightly tweaking the recipe. And you will find that you will never get bored of your favourite recipes since they change with the seasons. In spring, you could make a delicious asparagus risotto, then come summer, you swap out the asparagus for some freshly podded peas, and during autumn, you can use some full-flavoured mushrooms. A simple risotto recipe has then been altered and adapted throughout the year to fit in with the season. And with the seasonality comes a variety in flavour which will ensure you will never get bored of the dish.
8. Take back the power
When you are able to take a whole head of cauliflower with leaves and all. And understand how to turn that into something like a cauliflower pie. You will have much more power over the quality of the cauliflower that you buy. When buying a whole head, you can see how healthy the plant was and assess the freshness as well as more easily being able to buy it organically. Whereas when you buy it precut you can’t assess the freshness or health of the plant. Nor can you be sure of the chemicals that have been used to clean your precut vegetables.
Therefore, if you want to be assured that you’re eating the best quality vegetables that will give you the most nourishment possible. You will want to be able to prepare a meal from nothing but that raw ingredients. Because when you’re cooking from scratch, you just have so much more power over what you put in your body compared to preprepared meals.
9. Start with one skill and gain many more
You will find that as you’re getting better at cooking from scratch, that you will want to experiment more. And you might even find that you will want to start gardening. Just so you will have access to all the fresh herbs you want. You might even find that you want to grow some heirloom vegetables or fruit so that you can incorporate them into your cooking. And before you know it, you’ll have your own little kitchen garden going on. Because I find that once you start cooking from scratch, you will want to learn more and more skills.
You might start off, with making some pasta. Where you use plain tomato passata and cut up your own vegetables for the sauce. You might add some homegrown herbs to the sauce. Serve it with premade pasta and sprinkle it with some cheese. Which would make a delicious and nourishing meal. But you might find that after some time you feel the need to make some homemade egg pasta. Or you might want to use your own homegrown tomatoes instead. Or maybe if you really like dairy, you might start experimenting with making your own cheese.
You will find that by starting on learning this one skill. It will lead you to gather and learn a great many skills. Each is as valuable as the next.
10. The cooking from scratch diet
Years ago, I read once about a woman who wanted to lose weight. But she didn’t want to restrict herself foodwise. So her solution was to cook everything from scratch. She could have as many biscuits as she liked, as long as she baked them from scratch. This inevitably resulted in her eating fewer biscuits since you can’t just eat a whole roll of biscuits whenever you want. Because even my super quick chocolate chip cookies take 15 minutes in total to make. During which time you might have thought better of eating all of them. And if you’re the type who just mindlessly eats while watching telly, then baking the biscuits yourself will help prevent that.
And even if, like me, you don’t need to lose weight. It is still helpful to cook from scratch, especially your snacks. Simply because it will prevent that mindless grazing that so many of us do. As well as being more aware of what you’re putting into your body in the first place.
What do you think about cooking from scratch now?
After reading about why cooking from scratch can benefit your life and your health. Have you changed your mind? Or are you just more convinced than ever that cooking from scratch is the best thing you could do for your family? Please let me know in the comments or send me a DM on Instagram. I would love to know what your cooking style is. And how much or how little you cook from scratch and why.
If you want to grow your from scratch cooking skill list. Then why not head over to my cooking the basics page.
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